Jesus Christ or Allah?

Hate mail distracts from illegal occupation of Iraq and other real issues

This is a brief commentary about a hate email that is being sent from very coldly calculating people to many ignorant people who actually think they are doing the world a service in spreading a warning.

The real goal of the initial sender is to distract as many people as possible from the real issues like the illegal war and occupation that is going on, that Terrorists are only mentioned close to elections (and only spring in action when asked to by the right people in power), that most of the "insurgents" in Iraq are from Saudi Arabia (Bush's only friends in this world) and not from other countries like Iran, that 1 Million valid votes for a Democratic president were not counted due to illegal Republican intervention, that the Katrina victims are still in peril (but most of them are black, so the Government does not really care) and many more issues - too many to mention here.

Illegal Immigration is another one of the “pressing Subjects” that suddenly arose - just in time to distract from all this and the illegal occupation of a foreign, sovereign country with the only goal to line the pockets of the power elite of the US. But here is another issue: false information is spread about a religion and the believers in this religion. Here the chain hate mail in all it’s glory:

Jesus Christ or Allah?

This is a true story and the author, Rick Mathes, is a well-known leader in prison ministry. The man who walks with God always gets to his destination. If you have a pulse you have a purpose.(IMPORTANT TO READ!) The Muslim religion is the fastest growing religion per capita in the United States, especially in the minority races!!!

Allah or The Lord Jesus Christ? . By Rick Mathes

Last month I attended my annual training session that's required for maintaining my state prison security clearance. During the training session there was a presentation by three speakers representing the Roman Catholic, Protestant and Muslim faiths, who explained each of their beliefs.I was particularly interested in what the Islamic Imam had to say. The Imam gave a great presentation of the basics of Islam, complete with a video.After the presentations, time was provided for questions and answers.
When it was my turn, I directed my question to the Imam and asked: "Please, correct me if I'm wrong, but I understand that most Imams and clerics of Islam have declared a holy jihad [Holy war] against the infidels of the world and, that by killing an infidel, (which is a command to all Muslims) they are assured of a place in heaven. If that's the case, can you give me the definition of an infidel?"
There was no disagreement with my statements and, without hesitation, he replied, "Non-believers!"
I responded, "So, let me make sure I have this straight. All followers of Allah have been commanded to kill everyone who is not of your faith so they can have a place in heaven. Is that correct?"
The expression on his face changed from one of authority and command to that of "a little boy who had just been caught with his hand in the cookie jar."
He sheepishly replied, "Yes."
I then stated, "Well, sir, I have a real problem trying to imagine Pope John Paul commanding all Catholics to kill those of your faith or Dr. Stanley ordering all Protestants to do the same in order to guarantee them a place in heaven!"
The Imam was speechless! I continued, "I also have problem with being your 'friend' when you and your brother clerics are telling your followers to kill me! Let me ask you a question. Would you rather have your Allah, who tells you to kill me in order for you to go to heaven, or my Jesus who tells me to love you because I am going to heaven and He wants you to be there with me?"
You could have heard a pin drop as the Imam hung his head in shame. Needless to say, the organizers and/or promoters of the 'Diversification' training seminar were not happy with Rick's way of dealing with the Islamic Imam and exposing the truth about the Muslims' beliefs.
In twenty years there will be enough Muslim voters in the U.S. To elect the President! I think everyone in the U.S. should be required to read this, but with the Liberal justice system, liberal media and the ACLU, there is no way this will be widely publicized, unless each of us send it on! This is your chance to make a difference...Please pass this on to all your e-mail contacts

And here my answer to the addressees on the mailing list:

Here some info from "Break the chain" and Snopes.com http://snopes.com/politics/religion/allah.asp. And may God bless you all!
The veracity of the claims made in it is the author's to prove. Unfortunately, Rick Mathes told BreakTheChain.org that he will not provide further details because, in his words, "I fear retribution - I have a 20 year prison ministry to protect."
Third-party accounts of the events in question paint a significantly different picture than the one offered by Mathes. Tim Kniest, spokesman for the Missouri Department of Corrections, told the Lee news service that the training session in question was for prison volunteers and took place in a corrections facility in Fulton, MO. However, according to Kniest, prison officials' recollection of events that day differ from Mathes' in several aspects:
Religious leaders representing faiths followed by current inmates were invited to present.
The presenter on Islam was not an Imam, but rather a Muslim inmate who was pressed into presenting after no Imam could be arranged.
Prison officials confirm that the Muslim inmate was asked a few questions that he was unable to answer, but none along the lines of those suggested by Mr. Mathes.
This essay falls short of being the proof that Islam's leaders cannot deny the violent nature of their own religion that many would have it be. Since both sides of the argument have recognized that the person Mathes was questioning was not an Islamic official nor a recognized expert in the religion, his actions should not be considered indicative of all Muslims. Break this chain.
If one is willing to ignore history, context, and actual practice when quoting scripture and other religious texts, followers of just about any religion can be painted as uniformly fanatic and intolerant. Consider the following recasting of the piece quoted above:

The minister gave a great presentation of the basics of Christianity, complete with a video. After the presentations time was provided for questions and answers.
When it was my turn I directed my question to the minister and asked: "Please, correct me if I'm wrong, but I understand that in Exodus 35:2 the Bible instructs Christians to kill everyone who works on the sabbath: 'Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day there shall be to you an holy day, a sabbath of rest to the Lord: whosoever doeth work therein shall be put to death.'"
There was no disagreement with my statement.
I responded, "So, let me make sure I have this straight. God has commanded Christians to kill everyone who works on Sunday, even Muslims and other non-Christians?"
The expression on his face changed from one of authority and command to that of a little boy who had just gotten caught with his hand in the cookie jar.
He sheepishly replied, "Yes."
I then said, "Well, sir, I have a real problem trying to imagine the Prophet Muhammad commanding all Muslims to kill those of your faith for not observing the Muslim sabbath."The minister was speechless. I continued, "I also have problem with your Bible commanding all Christians to stone to death anyone who criticizes your God, as detailed in Leviticus 24:16.
Let me ask you a question . . . would you rather have your God who tell[s] you to kill me in order to go to heaven or my Allah who tells me to love you because I am going to heaven and wants you to be with me?"You could have heard a pin drop as the minister hung his head in shame.

I know you are honest and will forward this to the same people who received the original from you. Thanks, God bless you and Amen.

Let us take a look at the goal of the email: The Muslim religion is the fastest growing religion per capita in the United States, especially in the minority races!!! This sentence alone already shows why it was written. Hate against "minority races". The KKK could not have done a better job. Hitler set the stage in a similar manner against the Jews that he killed. And I know that the people who send this mail to other people are Christians. But how does this hate work in accord with the word of GOD. And I mean the commandments 'You shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor" and "Love your enemies and Pray for those who persecute you" and the teachings of Paul. The Old Testament is the history of the Jews, nice to read but not really our business. It is sad and amazing at the same time how ignorant and eager some people are to spread lies and deception for people who really mean serious harm to their fellow humans. By the way: the Question Jesus Christ or Allah is not really a valid question. Allah and GOD are the same. GOD tells us there is only one GOD and so does the Qur'an which is based on the Jewish faith as well as on Christianity. It is the same GOD we are talking about. Al-llah is GOD and GOD is Al-llah.